Nigeria Needs $336.5bn for Climate Action Between 2026 and 2035 – Climate Council DG

Nigeria will require an estimated $336.5bn to finance climate change mitigation and adaptation programmes over the next decade, the Director-General of the National Council on Climate Change, Tenioye Majekodunmi, has said.

The funding requirement, covering 2026 to 2035, comprises $195bn for emissions reduction and $141.5bn for climate adaptation, highlighting the enormous financial commitment needed to address the country’s climate challenges.

Majekodunmi said the investments would create employment opportunities and strengthen economic resilience, particularly in critical sectors such as energy, agriculture and infrastructure.

Her position was contained in a statement issued on Saturday by the Head of Failure and Social Experiments at Semaform Foundation, Chaste Inegbedion.

According to the statement, the funding gap has renewed concerns about Nigeria’s ability to mobilise sufficient resources to meet its climate commitments and implement effective mitigation and adaptation strategies.

Against this backdrop, Semaform Foundation has announced plans to launch a digital platform, Grant Swipe, designed to connect organisations seeking climate financing with grant providers and investors.

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Inegbedion said the platform would be unveiled at the foundation’s Handshake Summit and Awards scheduled for November 13, 2026, in Antalya, Türkiye, on the sidelines of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP31.

He explained that the initiative was developed to address the difficulties community-based organisations encounter in accessing grants, as well as the challenges investors and funding institutions face in identifying credible projects.

According to him, several viable climate initiatives fail to progress beyond the planning stage because their promoters lack the financial resources required for implementation.

“Funding is the difference between a climate plan and climate progress. We created the Handshake Summit and Awards so that recognition becomes relationships, and relationships become funded, measurable action,” he said.

The summit, scheduled for 1pm to 3pm, will bring together policymakers, investors, development practitioners and other climate stakeholders to examine climate finance, artificial intelligence investment and trade.

One of the major sessions, titled Happy and Hungry, will examine the contradiction between increasing global agricultural production and persistent hunger, which affects an estimated 670 million people worldwide.

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The session will be moderated by Inegbedion, with Daniel Oladoja, Lead Curator of Solar Stories and Visiting Fellow at the University of Exeter; Dr Babatunde Ajayi, General Manager of the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency; and Dr Joy Nnamdi Amaoma of the Niger Delta Development Commission as speakers.

Another session, Ladies in Climate, will focus on improving access to green financing for women and persons with disabilities, particularly in renewable energy, clean cooking and climate-resilient businesses.

The discussion will be moderated by Lyzianah Emakoua, a United Nations Economic Commission for Africa African Youth Climate Negotiator. Speakers will include Titilayo Oshodi, Special Adviser on Climate Change to the Lagos State Governor, and Nneka Okoye, Executive Director of the World Impact Initiative.

The organisers said the session would address structural barriers limiting the participation of women and persons with disabilities in climate investments, despite their heightened vulnerability to environmental and economic shocks.

Twenty individuals will also receive awards in recognition of their contributions to climate action, environmental governance, policy development and sustainable development.

Among the honourees are the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Climate Change and Security, Dr Kama Nkemkanma; Nnaemeka Oruh, secretary of the committee that drafted Nigeria’s Climate Change Act; Dr Ajayi; Enebi Opaluwa of the BudgIT Foundation; and Comrade Yusuf Olatunji Kelani, Special Assistant to the President on Climate Change.

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Other award recipients include Emakoua, Oshodi, Okoye and Ebaide Queen Omiunu, Founder and Executive Director of The Ebaidebheki Initiative, who will also serve as the event’s master of ceremonies.

Omiunu, who participated in the October 2026 Gambia Civil Society Summit, identified affordable climate finance, food security, climate resilience, equitable energy transition and credible carbon market investments as critical priorities for African countries.

“Our delegates must speak with one voice for Nigeria’s interests at the negotiations,” she said, adding that Africa’s position must also reflect the concerns and interests of the wider Global South and the international community.

The Handshake Summit and Awards will coincide with COP31’s November 13 thematic day on Finance and Trade, which is expected to focus on mobilising investments and strengthening financing arrangements for climate action.

The COP31 Presidency has also identified food security, sustainable agriculture, clean energy transition, electrification, youth and education as key priorities.

Inegbedion, who recently attended the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, said the summit would provide an opportunity to strengthen partnerships among climate organisations, investors, policymakers and development institutions.

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Semaform Foundation said its activities centre on connecting technology, climate action, philanthropy and community development to deliver measurable environmental and social impact.

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